Thanks for the reviews. It does seem that you are all getting in to the swing of this. There's plenty more to go yet, so I hope you're not getting tired of it just yet. Enjoy!

Marissa's Issues

Marissa sat staring out of the windows at the magnificent ocean view in front of her. She tried to stop her mind from darting in several directions at once and just concentrate on the calming view of the beautiful blue water.

Ryan moved over and sat beside her. Putting his arm around her, he pulled her towards him. "Are you not feeling well?" he asked wondering just what had happened to the happy go lucky person that he'd left the room with only minutes before.

Marissa took a moment to react, so lost in her own thoughts that she hadn't quite realised that he had spoken. "Sorry?"

"You told Summer on the phone that you weren't feeling well." Ryan added.

Marissa just shrugged. "I'll be fine. I just didn't want to go shopping right now."

Ryan held her and waited for her to say more but there was nothing but silence. "You do know that I don't buy it. There's more to this than the shopping. How about you just talk to me? Remember that was the deal." He pushed, trying to get her to open up. He was worried that she was like this because of their run in downstairs and unfortunately he knew that now that the cat was out of the bag – the chance of it improving in the near future was practically zero. If anything he imagined that they may have an even bigger audience waiting for them when they got off the plane back in LA. He made a mental note to call ahead and organise a few guards to meet them and get them out of the airport as quickly as possible. Ryan tried again to get her to open up. "Come on – you love shopping. Were you just worried about the media circus tagging along because I'm sure we could sneak you out. As long as we're not together, it shouldn't be too bad?" he asked.

"I just wasn't in the mood for wedding dress shopping." Marissa replied somewhat tersely.

Ryan watched the expressions move across her face and started to put two and two together. "Ah huh … What about if it had been your wedding dress?" he asked.

Marissa turned in his arms to look deeply at him. She could feel her eyes start to well up. "I'm a horrible friend. I should be so happy for Summer and I am but it's just that after what went on downstairs …." She started.

Ryan nodded, he knew exactly where she was going with this. "You know that we're going to have to wait a while longer." Ryan finished. The truth was that he had been thinking the same thing.

Marissa nodded. "I mean if they are like that just because we danced together, imagine what it will be like when we announce we're engaged? … Summer wants this big wedding where she is the centre of attention. If we announce our engagement … then we would just ruin it." Marissa added.

Ryan wanted to disagree with her and tell her that he thought everything would be fine but he couldn't. "Unfortunately, I have to agree." He tried to think of someway that he could make her feel better. "But look at this." He held her hand up, moving the promise ring around with his fingers. "We don't have to be in any hurry. As far as I'm concerned we're married already."

Marissa smiled sadly through her tears. "What because we spend so much time in bed together?"

"No." Ryan thought for a moment. "Actually … thinking about it, maybe I don't want to get married, if all those old stories about the girl only giving it up to get the guy hooked and then the supply drying up as soon as they get the ring on their finger are true." Ryan teased.

Marissa playfully hit him. "Well I already have a ring on my finger and I don't think you've had any problems with supply?" She suggested.

"True." He answered. "… What I had really been about to say was that, as far as I'm concerned …" he looked back into her deep blue eyes wanting to make sure that she understood the sincerity of his words "We are already fully committed romantically, physically, emotionally. There is nothing that a piece of paper could do that will make any difference to the way I feel about you."

Marissa started to feel the tears well in her eyes yet again. She felt like she was some sort of emotional wreck. She may have been confused about a lot of things right now, but one thing she did know was that the she loved him to the point that she ached for him. How had she managed to get so lucky? She moved to hug him and hold him closer still; hoping that somehow he would be able to feel her love as it emanated through her.

Ryan returned the embrace holding her tightly to him. After a few minutes he pulled back slightly and looked her in the eyes again. "So are we good now or was there something more?" he asked. He just felt that she was still holding back.

Marissa hesitated. She didn't know if she was ready to deal with the rest of it just yet. "I just …" Marissa shrugged.

"What?" Ryan asked knowing that he needed to get to the bottom of all this while she was actually talking. He couldn't help but see the oddness of the situation. When they were at high school it was always him that kept things to himself, now it was Marissa that seemed to have trouble opening up.

Marissa pointed to the newspaper. "They just mentioned a few things there that have been worrying me and I have no idea what the answers are to them."

"About what happens when the movie is finished?" Ryan asked, knowing that the words had almost jumped off the paper at him when he had read them. He knew that they had both been avoiding dealing with it.

Marissa nodded.

"What do you think?" Ryan asked.

"I can't think anymore. My brain hurts from trying to work it out." Marissa replied giving him a small smile.

"Okay. Well the way I see it, and feel free to stop me if I've got it wrong, because I certainly don't imagine that I have all the answers." He assured her.

Marissa nodded wanting him to continue.

"Well, I guess first things first." All of a sudden, Ryan was the one that wasn't feeling so good. He knew they needed to have this talk but there were so many factors and so many possible outcomes that he wasn't sure if he was ready for it. He took a deep breathe and forged on.

"Since you've agreed to marry me, I was sort of hoping that you may be prepared to relocate to LA?" he looked at her hopefully.

Marissa hesitated and stared back at him, regret in her eyes. "That will be fine in the long run. But I have contracts that I have to fulfil, and they're all in Europe."

"Okay. So how many and for how long?" Ryan asked.

"I'm not really sure. Kate, that's my new manager, would have all the details. She keeps my diary and just tells me when and where I'm supposed to be. I just got her to put everything on hold while I did the movie but that just means that it will be all backed up and I'll have to spend a lot of time making up for the period I have had off."

Ryan rubbed his free hand over his brow trying to think clearly about what was the best way to attack things. "Well then. Firstly, I guess we need to talk to Kate and get a copy of all of these contracts. Maybe we can get you out of some of them. And those that we can't then I guess you'll just have to finish by commuting back and forth when you can. Once we work out when they are, I'll try and rearrange my work so that I can come with you whenever I can."

"You'd do that for me?" Marissa asked.

Ryan nodded. "Of course. Although I think you are giving me more credit than you should. Maybe I'm doing it more for me. You know I can't sleep without you beside me any more." He smiled hoping that he would get a smile back in return.

He was rewarded with a minute one which was instantly followed by a frown. "But what am I going to do when I do move back? I mean I still need to work?"

"No you don't." Ryan replied. "We will never need money. I have enough investments now that we could both stop work and we'd still be comfortable for the rest of our lives."

"Ryan. I can't take your money." Marissa insisted.

"It's not my money. It's our money. You can have it all, just as long as you spend the rest of your life with me." Ryan explained.

"I don't want to marry you for your money." Marissa assured him starting to get angry.

"I didn't mean that. I just mean that there is no reason for money to be a concern for us. You don't have to work." Ryan tried to reassure her.

"Yes I do Ryan. I thought you of all people would understand." Marissa cried out and ran in to the bedroom, throwing herself on the bed and burying her head in her hands.

Ryan was stunned. He tried to think back over what he had said and still couldn't see what he'd done wrong. He stood and followed her and sat on the side of the bed stroking her back as she sobbed in to the pillow. "Ris. Talk to me. Make me understand what's troubling you … please. I don't understand why you feel like this but I'm never going to … unless you talk to me."

Marissa's sobs started to abate as she heard the concern and care in his voice. She turned to look at him, trying to speak between the sniffles that were escaping from her. "I … will not … turn … into my mother."

Ryan was momentarily shocked. "What?"

"You sounded like you expected me to be just like my mother. A useless token female who only needed a rich man, any rich man … she wasn't fussy … to take care of her. You know what she was like. She had no money of her own so she was prepared to become nothing more than a high class whore just to ensure she had all the beautiful things in life and then when she was left with nothing, she was happy to use her only daughter to live off. I suppose I should thank her for the genes that made me attractive enough that I could actually make it as a model; otherwise she would have probably been my pimp. I wouldn't put anything past her after what she did to us to ensure her income stream remained intact. But modelling is not what I would have chosen for myself. I wanted to go to college; wanted to do something with my life; wanted to be with you and she destroyed that because she needed me for a meal ticket. Don't you understand … I need my own money to be independent? I refuse to ever be anything like her."

Ryan sat on the edge of the bed stunned. He hadn't realised just how strongly Marissa felt about all this. No wonder she had complained about her brain hurting from thinking about it all. His was starting to hurt now too.

He thought for a moment trying to find the right words to reassure her. "You will never be anything like that. We both know that." Ryan replied. "So let's go back to what we do know. You are happy to move to LA if we can find you something to do? And I don't mean just looking after me. I mean a paying job so you'll have your own money." He looked at her waiting for the reaction.

Marissa nodded.

"Well … I said I didn't want to tell you this and that he should tell you himself … but given the state you're in, it may help to know that J.B. told me the studio is interested in working with you again … if the right project comes up." Ryan said hoping that she would see this as an option.

Marissa shrugged but tried to smile.

"Okay, so I know it's not what you want to do long term. But at least it is something. And maybe you could do some modelling in LA? I know it's not Europe or even New York but it's not exactly a fashion backwater. Surely if you cut back on the catwalk stuff and did more magazine layouts, then the photo shoots could take place anywhere?" Ryan suggested.

Marissa could see how hard he was trying to find a solution for her … NO … for them. She couldn't help but start to smile.

Ryan noticed as the corners of her mouth started to move in the direction of a small smile. "What did I say something right for a change?"

"No. Well not no, but maybe. I don't exactly know what I'm going to do but I guess I just realised that I'm not doing this alone. If you're prepared to work this out with me then I know we'll find a solution. Somehow. Somewhere." She shrugged.

"That's my girl." He bent to give her a short, sweet kiss. "I'm not suggesting we have all the answers, but we will work them out together."